Page 46 of Perfectly Naïve
Sawyer chuckles when I glance at him. “Welcome to Pack Flynn game night.”
“Is it always this intense? I don’t think I’ve ever seensomeone take Uno so seriously.” I’m not even sure if they’re being serious.
“You should see them play Stratego. Sometimes that ends in bloodshed.”
I gasp and glance at the twins. “No bloodshed!” They must be obnoxiously competitive. I bet they were terrors when they were younger.
They both give me sheepish looks.
“Technically, Wilder started it. I’m defending myself,” Hayes grumbles.
“Oh, fuck?—”
Sawyer holds up his hand to cut off Wilder. “Behave while Liv is here. We don’t want to scare her off, do we?” They both shake their heads. The pops and the buzzing microwave fill the silence for a few beats, the mouthwatering, buttery scent making its way over to the table.
“So,” I hedge, “Sawyer never told me the full story of how you all met and became a pack.”
“Well, Hayes and I knew Sawyer growing up. Anyway, Sawyer and Liam met at Chicago State. Hayes was at the community college to get his associates, and they all ran into each other at a coffee shop. They were serious about studying because they’re the smart ones,” Wilder says with a self-deprecating laugh.
Hayes bristles. “You’re smart too.”
Wilder ignores him. “So these nerds kept the same study schedules and ended up sharing a table.” He shrugs. “They hit it off, and one day I had to bring Hayes something, and it was pretty much history after that.”
“We all got along great.” Liam picks up the story, setting two bowls of steaming popcorn on the table. “A lot of my friends had gone different directions, and I was sort of alone for a while, but these guys just accepted me into their group.”
“We weren’t technically a group until you were with us,”Sawyer corrects. “The twins and I rode the same bus, but never really hung out until later.”
“You were there for all the important pack-bonding moments,” Hayes adds. “Like that time Wild fell into the duck pond.”
The guys all share a laugh.
“Do I even want to know?” I ask, smiling at the thought of Wilder soaking wet.
“There was a crazy goose.” He shakes his head. “Geese are mean as shit. Stay away.”
“Noted.” I search his face. He’s talked a lot about everyone else, but not a lot about himself. “What about you? When did you start tattooing?"
His features light up. “I did my apprenticeship at a tattoo shop pretty much right out of high school, learned for a few years, and began my humble career as a starving artist.”
“He always used to draw in class. Got in trouble all the time,” Hayes says, smiling at the memory. “Our parents were exasperated when he decided to tattoo, but he was born for it.”
This is the first I’ve heard of their family. “And where do your parents live?”
“They moved to Florida a few years back, fleeing the cold.”
When the twins trade looks, I say, “You miss them.”
They nod. “Yeah, we do, but we can’t begrudge them a warm retirement. Besides, we love heading out to see them in the middle of January, when it’s cold enough to freeze our balls off here,” Wilder explains.
I glance at Sawyer. “And what about your dads?” His mom passed away when I was a teenager. It had been devastating for me, since Angela Flynn had all but raised me while my mother spent her days with her society friends and organizations, but it had been earth-shattering for Sawyer. I only met his dads a few times, but they seemed kind and caring. As faras I know, they’re all close and he has a good relationship with his dads. Wish I could say the same.
“They’re still here, but they quit construction and opened a handyman business. Too many people were getting screwed over by hacks or contractors trying to rip them off.” Sawyer’s voice has roughened.
“Are you going to shuffle all day or deal?” Liam says, taking the conversation to safer territory.
Wilder scowls at him. “Don’t think I forgot about the dance party. If Hayes wins this round, I demand a foxtrot.” He lays out cards in front of each of us.
“What is it with you and the foxtrot?” Sawyer asks, organizing his hand.
